Stuck in The Moment OR The Strangest Friendships
by MissFrodoBaggins
Summary: Nico, Percy, and Thalia: an action packed, romantic slash influenced story. Nico Thalia or Nico Percy? Rated T for language and violence. Under the influence of the song "Stuck in the Moment" by Justin Bieber. One-shot. ENJOY :


**...Percy and Nico get lost in an underground world and meet and old friend in…**

The Strangest Friendships:

Percy Jackson and the Olympians fan fiction

Nico Di Angelo had been told by Hades to spend some time away from the Underworld and try to go to school like a normal kid. Nico found this challenging since his sister and his mother died and his father was an Olympian god. Then again, being "normal" was always a challenge for young demigods like him. Annabeth was spending time with her dad and step mom, Grover was still at camp with Juniper, Thalia, of course, was Artemis' lead huntress, so she was busy terrorizing some national park or something. Nico never really felt like he had friends. The only kid that ever made him feel apart of something was Percy Jackson, the son of Poseidon. So in Nico's mind, Percy was his friend. And there he was, standing across the street from Nico at a bus stop in New York City.

Percy didn't seem to notice Nico was there, so Nico decided to cross the street and say hi. He hoped that he would recognize him, since he'd changed a lot since he'd last seen him.

"Hey Percy," Nico said. It felt weird, since he didn't usually approach people in that way.

Percy looked around in the opposite direction of where Nico stood. "Mom, are you calling me?"

Nico chuckled. "No Percy, it's me, Nico Di Angelo. I'm right beside you,"

Percy flipped around to see Nico. He stared at him with wide eyes. "Thalia..?"

In spite of the front he usually put on for society, Nico burst out laughing.

The son of Poseidon stood there, starring at Nico, completely clueless.

"I'm not Thalia, its Nico; the son of Hades! Don't you remember…?"

Percy blushed. "Oh, hello Nico, I really thought you where Thalia; your hair's so long now, and… since when did you wear makeup?"

"I don't know, since I decided to grow up a bit."

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Anyway, I can't tell you people apart. All you people dress the same to me."

Nico snorted. "Don't you think she wears a little bit more color than I do?"

Percy shrugged. "You've always been a bit feminine to me; you could pass as Thalia."

Percy started laughing, but Nico just stood there. "Not funny dude,"

Percy cleared his throat and flipped his dark bangs. "You're right, not funny…" But it was obvious that he was still trying to hold back laughter.

"So, what brings you to the world of the living?"

"Hades; he told me I need to stop talking to ghosts and act like a normal 15 year old."

"Wow you're 15…"

"Wow, you're 18…"

Nico and Percy stood there thinking about how much time had passed between the last war and now.

"So," Nico said. "What are you waiting for?"

"Nothing…"

"Aren't you going to college soon?"

Percy contemplated over the question. "There's been a huge debate over whether or not college would be a good idea. I mean, I've been through so many schools… I don't even know if I've been to school long enough to go."

"Of course you have; everyone deserves to go to college… Except me…"

"Why not you…?" Percy asked.

"Don't you see?" Nico said, looking down at himself. "No one wants me at their school. I haven't been to school in so long, I mean, I've been so caught up in the Underworld…"

Percy nodded. "Don't worry about college Nico; you haven't even been to high school yet."

Nico nodded. "I guess you're right."

Nico noticed a girl across the street. She was so pretty. Her blond hair was blowing in her face. She wore a bright orange t-shirt. Wait… That was Annabeth Chase!

"Percy, its Annabeth!" Nico said.

Percy looked up quickly, but Annabeth was gone. "Where…?"

"But…" Nico looked around. "She was just there!"

Percy shook his head and smirked. "I think you need a break, Di Angelo."

Almost out of no where, Nico heard Annabeth's voice in his ear. "Look down," she said. Nico looked down. Then suddenly, Percy and Nico where falling through a trapdoor under the concrete. Nico was falling so fast that he didn't realize where he was. After about a minuet of falling and screaming like girls, Nico and Percy fell on their butts.

Nico looked around. "Where the hell are we?"

"I have no clue…" Percy said.

The boys were surrounded by vines and trees and exotic plants. The ground was dirt and moist.

"A rainforest maybe…?"

"In the middle of New York,"

"We're demigods; anything can happen around here."

"True, very true," Percy said. "Do you think this has anything to do with Annabeth?"

"I'm almost positive."

"If we never get out of here, I'm silting my throat with Riptide so you can drink my blood to survive."

Nico shivered in disgust. "Don't worry, you're not suicidal, and I'm no vampire." He stood up and dusted off his black skinny jeans. "Come on Percy; let's look for a way out."

Percy exhaled. "I guess you're right." He stood up and followed Nico through the darkness of the underground rainforest.

Nico and Percy had been looking around for hours and still there was no sign of a way out. Nico's pale face was paler and his forehead was covered in beads of sweat.

"We have got to find a way out of this hell hole!"

"You're telling me," Percy said.

Suddenly, they heard a rustling in the trees. Nico froze; his hand instantly went to the sword at his side. From under a fallen tree, came a swarm of tiny black demons. Their eyes glowed yellow, they had upturned, bat-like noses and sharp red teeth. Their bodies where like huge, hairy black spiders. There had to be at least a million of those things.

Percy pulled out Riptide and tried to stab some of the creatures, but they where too fast for them.

"They're too low to the ground to get a good stab at!" he said, looking at Nico. He had a pleading in his eyes.

"Well don't look at me," Nico said. "I'm just as clueless as you are!"

Before they knew, the creatures where swarming around them in all directions, making it impossible to escape. Nico looked around frantically.

"Uhh…" he kicked some of the demons of as the nibbled on his shoes.

"I would drown them, but there isn't any water around." Percy said.

"Yea, real helpful," Nico muttered.

"We have to think fast, any minuet these creatures will eat us."

"How would you know? Ever heard of any mythology that included _these_?"

"This may sound crazy, but I don't think this has anything to do with us being demigods."

"Then what could possibly be wrong with this place?"

Percy shrugged.

It seemed the more they tried to fight back, the harder it was to fight them back. Nico heard a tree trunk split in the distance. He saw huge yellow eyes in the dark of the forest. A giant demon spider came slowly from behind the trees. It let out an ear splitting hiss that made Nico's ears ring.

"Holy shit," Percy said, dropping his jaw. "What are we gonna do now? We're trapped by these things, and now their queen wants to kill us. The worst part; we don't even know how to fight these things!"

Nico ignored him. Vines came out from the forest and tied Nico and Percy back to back to a tree; the vines where thorny and cut into their arms. Both boys fought back against the bonds, but it was no use.

To their surprise, the queen demon spider spoke. "And now, for your sins, I shall kill you both." It said.

"What sins…?" Percy screamed at the beast.

The demon glared at Percy. "You dare question me, child!" And with that, it took one of its pinchers and slammed it on his forehead. Percy's head tilted to the side, his eyes shut. He didn't move.

"Percy…!" Nico screamed. "You fucking killed my friend!"

"Hey bitch!" someone yelled. Nico looked towards the screamer. It was Thalia, daughter of Zeus. She was wearing this awesome black shirt with neon zebra spires and ripped skinny jeans. She wore her signature leather black jacket. She had a tiara like thing in her spiky black hair to symbolize her position as Artemis' lead huntress. Her eyes where so blue, like lightning in the night sky… But no time to drool over Thalia, Nico wasn't sure how much more time he had to live.

Thalia ran up to the giant demon bravely and injected it with some green liquid. The monster fell to the ground and died. The smaller demons hid under a rock. Thalia looked through her pockets and cursed. "Where's the rest of that stuff?"

She looked up and saw Nico. Their eyes connected. "Oh, so sorry dude, I should totally help you down." Thalia said.

"Y-yea, that would be nice," Nico said.

Thalia climbed up to where Nico was. She took out a pocket knife and sliced at the vine until it uncoiled Nico and Percy. They slid down the tree and hit the ground. Thalia jumped down next to them.

"Crap," she said, eying Percy. "Is he…?"

Nico paled. "I…" he exhaled, clutching his stomach. "No, thank the gods."

Thalia actually smiled. "Guess that's the advantage of being Hades' kid, huh?"

Nico smirked. "What was that green stuff you killed the queen with?"

"Bug spray," Thalia said.

Nico chuckled. Who would've guessed?

But he didn't have time to talk. Out of nowhere, the small demons where coming at full speed in his direction.

"Run!" Thalia said, looking frantically through her pockets for the bug spray.

"No," Nico insisted. "I'll fight them off with you,"

Nico ran towards the demons with his sword, hoping to drive them away, but they swarmed around his ankles and started to crawl up his body, nipping at his flesh. Nico tried to fight them off, but the pain brought him to the ground. He gritted his teeth, biting back cries of pain.

Thalia came at the demons, screaming with her shield aimed towards them. The jumped off of Nico and scattered. She chased them into the forest, leaving Percy and Nico alone in the quiet.

Annabeth's voice appeared in Nico's ear again. "Look up," she said. Nico looked up, and an owl flew from the forest and hit him smack in the face. The owl's beak scraped his nose. Nico wiped the blood with the back of his sleeve.

"What in Hades...?"

The owl shook itself off perched on his head. It dropped a parcel on his crotch.

"Fuck, you gods dirty owl! That thing was heavy! What, do you put rocks in there?" Nico fought back the tears that were forming in his eyes.

The owl made a weird chuckling sound. What was that its way of laughing?

Nico rolled his eyes and proceeded to open the parcel. After taking off some wrapping paper, there was more underneath that. After going through 5 sets of strange bronze wrapping paper, he found a bottle of ambrosia and nectar. Nico shook it and it was completely empty. What was the point of that then? Inside the bottle was a note. Nico unraveled it and read it aloud.

"I know you are trapped and angry at my owl, but you being down here is important and shall teach you much about yourself and your friends. Sincerely, Athena; and PS, leave my daughter out of this." Nico folded up in the letter, he found 3 small, heavy rocks. So the owl _was_ carrying rocks.

"Well that was no help." Nico said, irritated out of his mind.

Then the owl flew of into the dirt ceiling of the rainforest and disappeared in thin air. No surprise to the son of Hades though, he was used to seeing those kind of things.

Nico looked over at Percy. He was grumbling to himself about something. "Percy, you're awake!"

Percy rubbed his eyes. "Y-yea, I guess I am."

Nico crawled over to his side. "Ugh, your head is worse than I thought it would be…" Blood was caked over Percy's forehead and clumped together in his thick black hair. Nico touched his hairline. The blood dripped down his fingers. Percy winced in pain.

"It's fresh blood too," Nico said. He ripped off some of his shirt sleeve and pressed the fabric to Percy's head. Percy sat up and blinked.

"Where'd the demons go?"

"Thalia sent them away. She came and saved us ya know…" Nico said softly, focusing on Percy's wound.

Percy eyed Nico's ripped up clothes and his bloodied face. He had a bruise on his cheek, a bloody lip, and scratches and cuts all over his forehead. Under his ripped shirt and jeans, he saw spots of blood and little holes that looked like vampire bites.

"Wow Nico, they messed you up."

"No, I'm fine," Nico said. "I'm more worried about your head."

"Are those holes bites?"

Nico nodded. "Don't worry though; all those creatures will be dead soon."

"Why are you so worried about me?" Percy asked, flattered but curious.

Nico felt himself blush. "You're the only person other than Bianca that I really thought cared about me. I always felt so alone in this world after my sister died, but you made me feel like I was apart of something…"

There was a very awkward silence between the friends. Nico looked down at the dirt. He felt Percy's eyes on his face. He looked at Percy slowly.

"I um, should tell you that uh—"To Nico's surprise, Percy cut him off by kissing his lips. It was weird to be kissing a boy, but this was Nico's first kiss in his lonely existence and it felt real. And hey, Percy wasn't that bad a kisser. He could see how Annabeth enjoyed it so much.

Percy pulled away and stared at Nico. "I-I'm not gay," he said, blushing.

Nico laughed. He liked the sound of his laughter. It made him feel sort of alive. "I'm not either, we where just… Uh, Er…"

"Caught in the moment," Percy said. He smiled at himself.

"Yea completely captivated…"

"Totally,"

Nico didn't say anything, but Percy left his lips warm and almost numb. Was that how it was supposed to feel? He was too embarrassed to ask. I mean, he was 15 for crying out loud, he should've already had his first kiss, right?

"Now," Nico wondered, changing the subject. "What do I do about all these bites?"

He looked down at his arms and into his shirt. Ouch.

Thalia returned in perfect condition. She instantly connected eyes with Nico.

He stood up, helping Percy up with him. Thalia shook her head at the sight of Percy. "Why is it always you?" she asked, smiling.

Percy smiled back. "I don't know… Bad luck I guess."

"You've got better luck than me." Nico murmured.

"So, I guess didn't properly say hi to either of you…" Thalia said, looking the boys up and down; preferably Nico.

Percy looked back and fourth between the two. "Did I miss something?"

Thalia blushed. "Uh no, nothing except that I know the way out of this place..!"

Percy nodded. "So you're not gonna tell me then?"

Thalia smirked and looked at the son of Hades from the corner of her eye. "Nope," she said.

**Part II coming soon! **


End file.
